Front-Hub a la Issue

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Flying Zombie

Flying Zombie

~:Undead Forever:~
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so my front wheel began to do the DO-WOP waddle the other morning, after having just tightened and straightened everything.. Im worried I'll be needing another with an issue like this.

advices?
zombie
 
If you have just gone through the wheel, then you likely had the tire off. If so, let half the air out of the tire and work your hand around the wheel, squeezing the sidewall of the tire as you go to make sure it seats properly as you re-inflate it. Also check to see that the tire is uniform all the way around. I've had improperly shipped or stored tires that get a weird bulge in the side that never goes away.
 
I think you misunderstood. The axle in front is causing a wobbly front Rim. Like..its.not Severe...but its.noticeable. (on a phone,sorry) ive tightened.the rim as right as I.can without dethreading a.nut.. do I just need a new.front wheel all together?
 
there should be an adjuster cone and locknut on each side of the axle (between fork leg and hub shell), the cone needs to be adjusted to the bearings, then the lock nut gets tightened against the cone. The axle needs to be held in a vise to keep it from turning (soft jaws, between blocks of wood, something...) If you are tightening just the locknut you may be stripping the threads on the cone or axle. Do both sides. turn the cone until you feel it contact the bearings, then back it off a little and tighten the lock nut. remove wheel from vise, check for overtight or looseness, repeat adjustment until there is no free play and minimal drag. This is hard to do without an axle vise and axle cone wrench...

early front hubs had no locknut, just the adjuster cone.
 
Walker's right; you probably just need to adjust your bearings, via the cones and "locknuts" (jam nuts). It takes a bit of fine tuning to get the adjustment right, until you get the feel for it, at which point it gets easy. It' is theoretically possible that something else could be the culprit-- like a bent axle, or something broken within the hub (cone, bearing cage, hubshell itself) but, 99 times out of 100, it's just that you've got the bearings too loose.
 
E="Walker, post: 862127, member: 3699"]there should be an adjuster cone and locknut on each side of the axle (between fork leg and hub shell), the cone needs to be adjusted to the bearings, then the lock nut gets tightened against the cone. The axle needs to be held in a vise to keep it from turning (soft jaws, between blocks of wood, something...) If you are tightening just the locknut you may be stripping the threads on the cone or axle. Do both sides. turn the cone until you feel it contact the bearings, then back it off a little and tighten the lock nut. remove wheel from vise, check for overtight or looseness, repeat adjustment until there is no free play and minimal drag. This is hard to do without an axle vise and axle cone wrench...

early front hubs had no locknut, just the adjuster cone.[/QUOTE]
PERFECTION. Thank you..now to seek out a vice.
 
if a wheel gets ridden with really loose bearings for a while, sometimes the bearing cage can get beat up or a bearing ball might get dislodged or broken, if this happens, no amount of adjusting will fix the problem. if you take it apart to inspect and lube, take a good look at the bearing races on the cone and in the hub to check for pitting or any other damage. good luck!
 
FWIW, i've never used a vise to adjust hub bearings....I can see how it might be helpful, but it is totally not needed.... 2 cone wrenches of the appropriate size do the trick.... depending on the hub, you might not even need a cone wrench for the "locknut", but that's the right way to do it....

Helpful info here: http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/hub-overhaul-and-adjustment
 
To RE-Cap. I have fixed my wheel, it took a crescent wrench and a pair of pliers.. it was a tricky thing to do, but I managed. Prior to finally getting it on tight enough not to wiggle with the forks movement, I took the front hub apart, just to assure it was all right, as I hadnt since I've owned it, done a complete full inspection. Anyway. still good and oiled up,, bearings look fine.. one of the "Locknuts" is practically welded to the nut beside it, to go against, and I wanted to detach the two, though without success. In either case, I got the Locknuts to work together just fine despite it, and who knows.. maybe it helped that they were stuck to the rod.

On another note, I just replaced the back tube [the front one will be needing a change soon, I feel, as well as the tires when funds are available] and I have a headlight waiting for me at the Post Office for me to pick up in the morning. Pictures to come soon of course!~

Thanks again for the help Fellas. I really appreciate the hasty advice.

ZOMBIE
 
Walker said:
glad it all worked out with your hub. I have taken to tearing duct tape into a narrow strip and using that as rim tape as the rubber ones can move around and then you get a flat from the spoke heads.
Click to expand...
Interesting Technique. I'll note the tip from experience! Thank you.
 
Lately I've been using the narrow (3/4"ish) insulation tape with great results, just do a couple of layers and boom! sorted ha
 
Insulation tape? I wonder how well ACE bandages would do, maybe the sticky gauze tape? I have a lot of medical overflow from tattoo work, Figured its worth asking now that its been mentioned :p

I read somehwere yesterday someone here had to finally break down and buy real tubes and tires because they were sick of blowing out USED vintage tubes.. correct me if Im wrong, but that seems unsafe to reuse even if it is specific to balloon tires..
I understand being a complete original, sitting in a museum, but why would you use used tubes on a rider? Seems hap-hazardous~

I appreciate you fellas helping me along. I promise Ill have it payed back with lessons learned in pictorials.
 
Yup the insulation tape works on my fixed and touring rig... Even at 140psi :)

Is spose the bandage might work, that calls for an experiment!

But yeah I always replace tubes, and reuse tyres if I can, I go a bit quick for questionable tyres-tubes-brakes n things




From Tapatalk on this stoopid iPhone...
 
I usually just cruise, but its Rhode Island, ya know? No matter your style of driving, you need to tread uphill at some point standing..lest you walk it up the hills [or have one of those nifty shifters] ..you will almost always hit a big hill in the day.. I mean it really covers all sorts of terrain.. I cant imagine reusing an old tube from years past.. as far as I see it, a bike is a classy Chassis.. tubes are neat when they work..not even original tubes are cool flat. :p
 
I use Newbaum's http://www.niagaracycle.com/categories/newbaums-cloth-rim-tape-21mm-box-10 ; it costs $3/wheel, but it's extremely durable, already has the cut out for the valve hole, and it's made less than 10miles from my home. Yes, i've used cheap rubber strips and still do, but they move around and cause the occasional pinch-flat. I've also used duct tape, but i'd rather spend a few bucks and support local industry than deal with cutting duct tape to size. I've also used a lot of Velox, but it costs a bit more than Newbaum's, and France is well over 10 miles away from home.... good stuff, though.
 
Bicycle808 said:
I use Newbaum's http://www.niagaracycle.com/categories/newbaums-cloth-rim-tape-21mm-box-10 ; it costs $3/wheel, but it's extremely durable, already has the cut out for the valve hole, and it's made less than 10miles from my home. Yes, i've used cheap rubber strips and still do, but they move around and cause the occasional pinch-flat. I've also used duct tape, but i'd rather spend a few bucks and support local industry than deal with cutting duct tape to size. I've also used a lot of Velox, but it costs a bit more than Newbaum's, and France is well over 10 miles away from home.... good stuff, though.
Click to expand...
Thanks, Ill try a few of these things out and see what pops. I use new Slime tubes for my rider, so I dont really worry too much about flats, but the lesser the better.
 

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